Need some advice

[Funnel]

I'm planning to stay a week in Florida in February 2013, before the BIG easy cruise from New Orleans.
I'm thinking of renting a house in the Miami area. Does anyone have experience of renting houses in Florida?
I'm not looking for a luxurious house, just an ordinary house. We will only be two people staying there so it's not necessary to have a big house.
Any particular agencies you have been using that you can recommend? Are there "better" areas than Miami for renting a house? Other thoughts or recommendations?

Any suggestions are welcome!

/Erik

[Whimsy]

Maybe a condo instead of a house? If it's just the 2 of you a one bedroom condo would be a lot less expensive than a house.

[Whimsy]

You might also want to consider stay 3 days on the Atlantic side and 4 days on the Gulf side. Our personal preference is the Gulf side for calmer waters and beautiful beaches. Nice shelling along Sanibel Island. We also love St Pete's Beach, Clearwater and the Panhandle area. If you are flying into Miami and renting a car it's not a big deal to get across that little bit of Florida to the Gulf side.

[Donna - dsw]

I rented a house in palm bay, fl last week and loved

[Donna - dsw]

Check out Vrbo rentals. I have used them 2 times. I always offer less than they are asking and have had good luck

[Mbandy]

Hi Erik... I'll chime in with Whimsy on this. Any particular reason you are thinking about south Florida? I much prefer the Gulf Coast. I used to live in the St. Pete / Clearwater area and the beaches there are spectacular. Lots to see and do over there too. As Whimsy mentioned the area around Sarasota down to Sanibel is fantastic too. To me, a much more relaxing atmosphere.

I'm here in the middle of the State now but Hooked is our resident expert on the Gulf Coast.

Whatever you decide, I hope you enjoy your visit to the "Sunshine State".

[CaroleH]

Hi Erik

Martin and I are going on the big easy cruise too, we are spending the week before in New Orleans along with redstripe and Jim. Just a thought for you to ponder or is Florida a definate for you

[BSeabob]

I'll second VRBO site as at least a starting point.

[Funnel]

Maybe a condo instead of a house? If it's just the 2 of you a one bedroom condo would be a lot less expensive than a house.

Yes, a condo is a good option. We have to look into that.

You might also want to consider stay 3 days on the Atlantic side and 4 days on the Gulf side. Our personal preference is the Gulf side for calmer waters and beautiful beaches. Nice shelling along Sanibel Island. We also love St Pete's Beach, Clearwater and the Panhandle area. If you are flying into Miami and renting a car it's not a big deal to get across that little bit of Florida to the Gulf side.

That might be a good option, to see both sides of Florida. We may go to Key West too, but nothing decided yet. One option could be 2-3 nights on each coast and 1-2 nights in Key West. Maybe it will be a bit too much to go to Key West too?

Check out Vrbo rentals. I have used them 2 times. I always offer less than they are asking and have had good luck

I have to check them out! Thanks!

Hi Erik... I'll chime in with Whimsy on this. Any particular reason you are thinking about south Florida? I much prefer the Gulf Coast. I used to live in the St. Pete / Clearwater area and the beaches there are spectacular. Lots to see and do over there too. As Whimsy mentioned the area around Sarasota down to Sanibel is fantastic too. To me, a much more relaxing atmosphere.

I'm here in the middle of the State now but Hooked is our resident expert on the Gulf Coast.

Whatever you decide, I hope you enjoy your visit to the "Sunshine State".

I think it is "standard" for us Swedes to aim for the south east part of Florida. We have not been thinking too much about exact location yet. We have to consider the Gulf Coast too.

Hi Erik

Martin and I are going on the big easy cruise too, we are spending the week before in New Orleans along with redstripe and Jim. Just a thought for you to ponder or is Florida a definate for you

We are planning about a week in Florida and then 4-5 nights in New Orleans before the cruise and maybe 2-3 nights in New York on our way home. It will be a long holiday, at least 3 weeks in total. I hope it will be snowing a lot in Sweden those weeks...


Thank you for all advice!
So many options, we may need two weeks in Florida!

/Erik

[Whimsy]

Funnel, Florida is a big state, 2 weeks would not be hard to do at all. One nice thing is you can do one way car rentals in Florida so you can rent where you come in and return where ever you want to fly out of to New Orleans. Maybe a few days in the Miami area, a drive down to the Keys for a few days then somewhere along the Gulf side. Fly from Tampa to New Orleans or take in a few days of Orlando, Disney World, Sea World, etc. I would think there should be plenty of flights from Orlando to New Orleans. Check out Southwest Arilines what ever city you chose, your bags will fly free. Up to 2 check bags per person.

Personally I would spend more time in Florida and less time in New Orleans. New Orleans is nice, great food, history, etc. but I would rather give my vacation days to Florida and New York than New Orleans. We love the party atmosphere of New Orleans but after a night or two it's been there, done that, got the T-shirt. I would rather watch a spectacular sunset on the beach (Gulf Side) with a cocktail then a relaxing dinner. I haven't been to New York but off the top of my head I am thinking Statue of Liberty, Broadway Shows, Times Square, shopping at the big department stores. Heck, you might want to check the Bermuda schedules and take a Bermuda cruise too!

Wish I had a wallet big enough to match my desires!!!!